ABOUT
About Me, as a Teacher
After 12 years of touring, recording, and teaching guitar in New York City, my wife, son, and I moved back to the area where I grew up (Old Lyme) to build a home studio where I could host lessons and produce music for the artists of my hometown community.
Being the son of a career long educator in the Old Lyme public school system, learning and teaching have always been a cornerstone of my family culture. Now 38 years old, I started teaching myself guitar 25 years ago and haven’t stopped since. I’ve been teaching guitar privately for the last 16 years in an effort to share what I’ve learned about music and guitar, two things that have had a profoundly positive impact on my life.
Unlike many guitar teachers, my experience as a professional touring musician gives me a unique perspective about what’s really crucial for students to gain from private lessons. Rather than merely drilling for competence, I focus on nurturing the emotion that drives the desire to learn. I do that by getting to know each student’s “why” and tailoring our lessons accordingly - whether by using their favorite songs to learn important theoretical concepts, or playing with amps and drums to get the feel of playing in a band, or laying down cool ideas on my studio recording software.
My mission is to get each student excited to learn so they can feel inspired to unlock their true potential and have a blast in the process.
About Me, as a Guitarist
It was all a blur. Coming off the stage like in a dream, I remember the feeling of my idol, Beck, striding up to thank my band and me for accepting his offer to play his album release show.
It was only a few short years before that I was sleeping on rest stop bathroom floors while on tour to keep from freezing to death.
With my childhood hero standing in front of me, my mind raced to ask the question: "How did I get here? How is this possible?"
The answer came quickly, and proudly: "Guitar. Guitar got me here."
If you rewind twenty-five years, you'll find a twelve-year-old James, awkward and angsty. I wasn't able to articulate it at the time, but I was in desperate need of something real. Sports, TV, and movies weren't doing it. Almost a teenager, life was getting intense fast, and I needed a way out of the endless loop of vapid distractions.
As if heaven-sent, my parents showed me The Beatles White Album. Mind blown. Then came Weezer Blue. Crushing. Then came Neil Young, Rust Never Sleeps. I was beyond hooked. I was hopelessly in love - with the lyrics, the songs, but mostly with the instrument that made this vast array of sounds possible. My soul was branded, I would never be the same, I would never stray.
Twenty-five years later, I'm thrilled to say that the guitar is still my best friend. It's given me the privilege of being able to tour the country and the world, share stages with my idols, and create incredible relationships.
Some of the strongest and most meaningful relationships are the ones forged with my students. In addition to songwriting, performing, and running multiple successful bands (Call It Arson, Haunted Continents, The End of America), I've been teaching and sharing my love of the instrument for over 16 years.